County Commissioner's Office

County Talk
By
Lamar Paris - Commissioner

A great statesman, Congressman Charlie Norwood, passed away last week. Charlie was a man of conviction and a dedicated public servant. He worked tirelessly to promote health care and worked closely with me in attempting to get funding for the US 19/129 North widening project. He made a surprise visit to my office in October and looked and felt great. He was the consummate politician and he will be really missed by the citizens of Georgia and this nation.

Show me the money.

Q. With your recent decisions, it seems that you are always concerned with money for the county. Why is that?
A. First, I was in the finance industry for many years and keeping accurate track of finances is something I have always done. So you are absolutely correct. I am the only person in Union County Government (not school) who is totally responsible for the county finances. I am the only one in the county that is legally required to balance the budget each year. Every time someone comes to me requesting a new employee, an increased budget item, another vehicle or piece of equipment, it is my responsibility to see if we have the money or anticipate having the money in the near future.

Q. Do you keep up with all the county finances by yourself?
A. Of course not. Robin Parks is the County Finance Director and Pam Peugh is the Accounts Payable clerk. They both have very difficult and involved jobs. While they perform a lot of the work, I must make the final decisions. Most decisions involved with county operation in one way or the other involve money. That is why money is such an important part of the job.

Q. Do the other elected officials have to be concerned with the county budget?
A. Not as a whole, but only as it applies to their individual budget. They present a budget proposal to me each year, which I must approve. Once the budget for their department is set, then it is their responsibility to stay within that budget or receive clearance to increase their budget. In the end, I am the one who has to say “NO” to increased funding requests such as the need for additional employees, from department heads, elected officials or the general public.

Q. Who controls the budgets of the District Attorney, Indigent Defense and the Superior Court judges?
A. They are part of the Enotah Judicial Circuit made up of Union, Towns, White, and Lumpkin Counties. Our four commission heads must meet and agree on any staff increases or pay raises for the circuit. Then each county must budget their portion of the cost. The state pays for the judges and a clerk, one public defender and assistant, and one district attorney and assistant. The counties are required to pick up the balance of the expenses, which are significant.

Q. Is it easy to balance the budget?
A. It is one of the hardest part of my job. It is not fun telling people that they can not have something that I know they may need, but there is a finite amount of money that we must work with. When I agree to increase individual budgets, then it is me alone that must go to the taxpayers and increase property taxes to then be able to balance the budget.

While the other elected officials and department heads do an excellent job of staying within their budget, in the end, it is my responsibility alone to keep a tight reign on all county finances.

Q. What is the hardest part of your job?
A. It is probably having to say “NO”. No one likes to hear it and I do not like having to say it. That is why money is so important to the operation of county government. If we do not have enough money, there is no way to continue to provide the increased services that you are demanding and the infrastructure is requiring, other than to increase property taxes --- UNLESS we increase our property tax base.

Q. How do we increase the tax base?
A. There are three ways. The first is to increase retail operations in the county, which not only pays more property tax but brings in additional sales tax. The second is industry. This brings in a tremendous amount of property taxes and more importantly, provides good jobs for our citizens. Another is the increase in residential construction.

Q. I thought you said that more houses cause a drain on the taxpayers?
A. It does, unless those homes average over $400,000 each. That is where new homes reach the break even point, and above that, they provide excess tax dollars for the amount of cost necessary to provide the services. This includes schools as well as county services.

Q. Where does our money come from to operate county government?
A. There are many sources, but to put it simply, approximately 1/3 of our budget is from property taxes, 1/3 from other revenues including fines and fees, and 1/3 from sales tax.

Q. How can we keep our property taxes from increasing in the future?
A. I, along with others, am working tirelessly to bring good business and industry to the county. It is impossible to maintain the services we now have without higher taxes unless we increase our retail and industrial base. While many in the county do not want to see either happen, we can not stop growth and it is going to come. We can either let others help pay for growth or you and me, the property owners, will be footing the bills.

Q. After the increased property assessments and tax increases this year, are you nervous about our future?
A. Absolutely. While other people have the luxury of ignoring county financial situations and needs when they consider what they think is best for Union County, I do not have that option. Therefore, increasing revenue and limiting spending is something I strive for practically every day. While I have had several people tell me that they don’t mind paying higher taxes for less growth, we do not hear from many of those people when we have a tax increase such as we had this past year. In fact, I do not recall anyone telling me that their taxes did not increase enough and we should raise them higher!

Some day when I leave office, I may join those who would like growth to stop. I understand their feelings. But my job and duty as Commissioner is to consider the needs of all the citizens of our community, old and young alike, now and in the future.

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